


i was made for loving you

by Trebleclefstories



Category: Grey’s Anatomy
Genre: Alternate Universe - Soulmates, F/M, First Kiss, First Meetings, First Time, Fluff, Grey’s Anatomy AU, Jo & Alex, Making Love, Romance, Romantic Soulmates, Season 9 Jolex, Sex, Soulmate AU, Soulmate-Identifying Marks, Soulmate-Identifying Timers, Soulmates, jolex, part 2 is inspired by tsjolex week, the Jolex soulmate AU nobody asked for
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-08-19
Updated: 2020-11-21
Packaged: 2021-03-05 23:47:33
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 4
Words: 18,695
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25983844
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Trebleclefstories/pseuds/Trebleclefstories
Summary: They say some people are meant to be. They say that some people were made for each other.- or -A Soulmate AU series of unrelated one-shots where Jo and Alex discover that they are soulmates under different circumstances
Relationships: Alex Karev/Jo Wilson Karev
Comments: 15
Kudos: 58
Collections: The Group Chat's Fics





	1. Part 1 - where you have matching soul marks

His mark was tingling. It had been tingling for the past two weeks. It was strange. Never had his mark tingled before. Not as a kid, not when he was with Rebecca, not when he married Izzie (who wasn’t his soulmate but Denny died and Izzie no longer had a soulmate so he thought it could work). It didn’t tingle with Lexie or Lucy or any of the various women he had slept with in the past month. But occasionally, while he was in the hospital, his mark would tingle. 

His soulmate was nearby. He knew that much. She was around here somewhere, just out of reach. He never thought he would meet his soulmate. The phenomenon was so rare. The only people he had know that found their soulmates were Meredith and Derek, and Mark and Lexie. Everyone had a soul mark, but not everyone would get the chance to meet the person with the matching mark. Mainly because, people are impatient. Even though everyone had someone designed specifically for them, people were too impatient to wait for that person. Everyone wanted the love and the fun quickly. No one wanted to do the work. So, eventually many people ended up in committed relationships with life mates. 

Having a life mate wasn’t a bad thing. There were plenty of people that were perfectly happy living their lives with a life mate. It wasn’t uncommon. In fact, nowadays, you were more likely to find that people were settling down with a life mate than a soulmate. That’s why he married Izzie. Her soulmate died and he hadn’t found his, so he thought he could make them both happy. He thought he could be a good, decent, honorable man. But that went out the window when she left him.

Since then, he hadn’t really gotten into anything serious. He gave up searching for someone that might make him feel like a little bit less of a screw up. Sure he had a girlfriend or two, but he made it pretty clear that it wasn’t anything serious. He filled his loneliness with a string of one night stands and hookups. He never slept with a girl more than twice. They’re less likely to get attached that way. It worked for a while. He almost forgot about the constellation on the inside of his left wrist. 

His mark was itching and burning like crazy. Not for the first time he cursed the fact that the mark was on his wrist and he was a surgeon who needed his hands to work. Resisting the urge to rub it, he hurried over to the pit where he was paged for an incoming trauma. He reached for a trauma gown and bumped into an intern he had never seen before. He pulled on the gown and gloves quickly without sparing a glance to the woman, “Do you mind?”

“Sorry.”

The sound of her voice made his heart speed up a little and his mark tingled. He ignores it and kept walking to the ambulance bay, noticing that she was trailing him, “Why are you following me?”

“I’m your intern for the day.”

“Hello intern. You have a name?”

“Jo Wilson.”

“Nice. I like chicks with boys names.” He glances at her and feels his heart pick up bit, but ignores it. Again. She was pretty. Beautiful even. He was sure if he looked into her eyes they’d be beautiful too. 

“Karev.” Callie interjects, pulling him out of his thought.”

“What? I do it’s hot,” He smirks and finally locks eyes with the beautiful young woman in front of him and it’s almost as if time stops. He feels it immediately. The burning sensation on his wrist as he clutches it tightly and gasps. He hears the intern exhale sharply and watches as she holds onto her side as if she just got the wind knocked out of her. 

They stare at each other for a moment with equally terrified expressions when they hear a voice in the background, “Holy shit.” They break eye contact and look for the source of the voice, Callie Torres, who’s eyes are wide in shock. “You guys are... woah.”

He takes a deep breath and looks back at his intern. Jo. Her name is Jo Wilson. She looks like she might run. You and me both. He was too damaged for her. She was a nice, normal looking girl and all he had ever known was crazy. He couldn’t possibly be her soulmate. He was an asshole. He was the last person who deserved to meet their soulmate. 

The sound of the ambulance arriving was enough to snap him out of his thoughts. Soon, he was so preoccupied with the sixteen year old girl’s injuries that he had slipped into attending mode and focused on controlling what he could. He sent her to work on his pre and post ops and watched her leave as the elevator doors closed.

“You can’t be serious,” Callie shakes her head. “You could’ve let her scrub in. You two could’ve talked and gotten to know each other in surgery. It would’ve been like the least stressful first date ever. She’s your soulmate for crying out loud.” 

“I can’t right now Torres. I just can’t,” he took a deep breath and closed his eyes. “I know what they say about me. I know I’m an asshole and a manwhore. I’m so screwed up. She doesn’t need that crap. She’s a bright, wide-eyed intern that’s got a lot going for her and she doesn’t need me and my baggage messing it all up.”

“Alex,” Callie smiles softly and sighs. “Do you know how rare it is to find your soulmate? The one person who will put up with your crap no matter what? The person who was quite literally made for you? Now I don’t know much about this Wilson girl but if she’s your soulmate, I’m pretty sure she’s tough enough to handle it.”

The elevator doors opened to the OR floor and they hurried to scrub in. As he was prepping for surgery, he tested the waters to see if what he had heard was true. They say you could sense your soulmate. If you try hard enough you could feel them and sense what they were feeling. So he closes his eyes and reaches out in hopes of maybe finding the connection. 

Within seconds, he feels confusion. Frustration. Nervousness. Excitement. Fear. Uncertainty. He chuckles to himself, yeah me too princess. He pushes all thoughts aside and begins to focus on the task at hand. About halfway through the surgery, he can feel her presence in the gallery. Sure enough, he looks up and sees her observing the procedure. 

“You could tell her to come down here you know.”

He ignores Callie’s comment and proceeds to tell her to go check on his patients again. He knows he’s being an ass, but maybe if he’s enough of a jerk she’ll forget about him and just move on to someone better. He knows it’s futile though. Once you meet your soulmate, you can try as hard as you can to distance yourself and be with other people but it’ll never be right. Because your soul has already found its missing piece. Take Meredith and Derek for example. Derek was married and tried to stay with Addison, while Meredith tried to date and forget about Derek. In the end, the connection was too strong. The bond was too deep. The pain was too much to stay apart. Mark and Lexie were a mess but when she died, she died loving him. A part of Mark died with her and eventually he succumbed to his injuries as a result of heartbreak. 

Hours later when the surgery is over and it’s time to check on his patient, he knows he’s gonna have to see her again. He knows the minute they are in the same room together his heart will race. He knows the minute they lock eyes he will feel as if all the oxygen in the world won’t be enough to restore his lungs after he forgets to breathe at the sight of her. But most of all, he knows he will feel like the worst person in the world for treating her badly. 

He sees her talking to Torres outside the girl’s room. He breathes in deeply and walks over to them. 

“Oh Alex! Your... intern brought you coffee.” Torres smiles and looks pointedly at the young woman in front of her. 

“Cool.”

They look at each other awkwardly for a moment when Callie clears her throat, “Wilson here was wondering if she could scrub in on your next surgery.”

The young woman in question looks over to Callie and glares, shaking her head. “No... that’s not... I mean, I would love to scrub in on your next surgery but um, you don’t have to...”

“Can I talk to you for a minute? Alone?” Alex says.

The intern looks over at Torres again and who nods at her encouragingly, “Yeah... we can talk.”

He turns around and has her follow him down to the tunnels, where hopefully he could find some privacy for the two of them to have a conversation. It felt right to bring her down here. So many significant things happened down there in the tunnels, so it seemed appropriate to have his first real talk with his soulmate in the same place. He stops and sits in a gurney. Just as he’s about to open his mouth and say something, he’s interrupted.

“Look. You obviously hate me. I don’t know what I did to piss you off or what you might have heard about me that made you decide that I wasn’t worth your time but I’m not a bad person. I am a kind person. I am smart. I was valedictorian of my high school, I went to Princeton, and Harvard Med. So what am I missing? What am I not getting? Please tell me so I can move on.”

“I don’t hate you. You haven’t pissed me off,” he insists

“I haven’t?”

“No. I just... it may be possible that I’ve... dated other interns...”

“You mean Heather.”

“Yeah...”

“And Leah.”

“Uh huh,” he nods sheepishly.

“And Susan, Stacy, Tina, Irene. Don’t worry about lying to me or trying to spare my feelings. There isn’t much that I haven’t heard about you already since you’ve screwed every one of my friends. But I am willing to put all of that aside if you are.” 

He stares dumbly at her for a second, “Yeah. I’d like that.”

“Okay.”

He wasn’t expecting her to know how big of a douche he was. He realized that he made a few mistakes but he hadn’t noticed that his reputation was scarily similar to what it was his intern year. If that wasn’t a slap in the face, then he didn’t know what was. “How about we start over. I’m Alex.”

One side of her mouth twitches as she reaches out to meet his outstretched hand, “I’m Jo.”

“Well, Jo, I have a Nissen tomorrow morning at 8am if you’d like to join me.”

Her smile grows wider and she nods enthusiastically, “Yes! I’d love to.”

“But for now, how would you feel about joining me at Joe’s bar for a drink tonight?” he asks, hoping she’ll say yes.

“Yeah, what time should I meet you?”

“I’ll come get you in the intern locker room at the end of your shift.” 

“Okay. Yes that sounds good.” She gives him a bright grin and he decides that it’s the most beautiful thing he’s ever seen, and vows to make sure that as long as he’s around, she’s got something to smile about. “I’ll see you in a few hours, Alex.”

He takes a giant breath in and mirrors her grin, “See ya in a bit, Jo.” He turns and walks toward the attendings lounge, hoping to run into Meredith in order to share the big news.


	2. Part 2 - where you don’t know until you kiss

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In this universe, you don’t find out who your soulmate is just by looking at them. No, it takes a lot more work than that. You’ve got to kiss them to find out.

He was an idiot. He was in love with her but he took too long and lost her. And now she wanted nothing to do with him. It was hard. Going from being someone’s best friend to avoiding them so that he didn’t do something completely stupid and tell her that he was in love with her. 

It would’ve been easier if he would’ve just slept with her from the beginning. If he would’ve just kissed her at Bailey’s wedding while they were drunk and trashing strangers’ hotel rooms. Because at least he would’ve known. He would’ve gotten it out of his system. Because that’s how you find out if someone is your soulmate. After you kiss. They say there’s this magical moment where both parties just know, and from then on it’s physically painful to be apart. You’re connected on every level. Every atom in your body is now attuned to the one you were designed for. 

He’s kissed many women—too many women, depending on who you ask. He’s never felt that before. Not with Rebecca, not with Lucy, or Lexie, or even Izzie—who he had married for God’s sake. The fact of the matter was, that finding your soulmate was so rare, that you could kiss and sleep with dozens of people just like he did, and still find yourself utterly alone. He didn’t know many people that were with their soulmates. Just a few lucky couples that, were made for each other in every sense of the word. Meredith and Derek. Bailey and Ben. Mark and Lexie. Callie and Arizona. 

It didn’t mean that these couples were perfect. They experienced pain and loss and heartbreak just like everyone else. But something was different about them. At the end of the day, no matter how much they tried to stay apart, the universe kept pulling them back together. It was different from a life mate. A life mate, you can walk away from. He did it. He divorced Izzie and was able to walk away a better man than before. It hurt, but it wasn’t unbearable. He didn’t feel this need to seek her out. Soulmates on the other hand, try and try to stay away from each other but keep coming back. No matter how bad that person may have hurt you, you forgive them. Because even a messy life with your soulmate is better than a life without them at all. 

So he wished he would have kissed her from the beginning, because then he would know. Then he could get over her. A small part of him hoped that maybe she’d be it. She was the first person who understood him and cared for him without wanting to change anything. Sure, he had Mer and Cristina, but that was different. They had been through hell and back together. There were moments where they hated each other. Jo was different. He knew from the minute he sat down with her at the bar and she taught him how to fake cry that she would be special. Maybe she’d be the one. Maybe she would be his match. 

But another part of him, the larger part, hoped she wasn’t. Not because he didn’t want her or didn’t love her. God knows he wanted her. He fell in love with his friend before he ever had a chance to complicate it or mess it up with something like a hook-up. That in itself was significant. Never in his life had he told a woman he loved her before he slept with her. Never in his life had he told a woman he loved her before they were even in a relationship. So the problem wasn’t that he didn’t want her. The problem was that he did. Him. The guy who screwed up every good thing in his life. The guy who screwed up every good person in his life. He didn’t want that to happen to her. He didn’t want to be the reason that she ended up more messed up than she already was. So as wonderful as it would be to be loved by her, he would resign himself to admiring from afar if that meant she got to live a happy life free of his baggage.

And he just pretty much ensured that he would be watching from afar. In retrospect, it really wasn’t his place to speak to Peckwell about her past. But honestly, he thought that if you liked someone enough that you were moving in with them, you would trust them enough to tell them about your past. He messed up yet another important relationship by not being able to keep his mouth shut. She didn’t want to talk to him or have him getting involved in her business so when he saw them arguing at the hospital on his way out with Jackson, he kept walking. 

For the first time in a long time, he actually considered picking up some random chick at the bar. He hadn’t noticed but it had been months since he had sex. The last time he hooked up with someone was sometime around four months ago, before Cahill decided to try to liquidate the hospital. That was also before he realized he actually had feelings for Jo. Come to think of it, he hadn’t been with anyone since the day they took in the hit and run kid. The day that Jo surprised him in the storage closet with powdered sugar donuts and he started to fall for her. Things shifted that day. Sleeping around didn’t seem as important as it did before. Sex for the sake of satisfaction wasn’t as appealing anymore. 

That was significant for him. Even when he was with someone he looked at other women. He’d cheated before. He wasn’t proud of it, but he had done it. He had done it to Izzie with that nurse Olivia. He wasn’t above that. He wasn’t a moral guy. Sure, he could be exclusive, but it wasn’t what he looked for. Hook ups were easier. Relationships were messy. So it kind of blew his mind that he hadn’t slept with anyone since falling for Jo. The thought of sleeping with someone who wasn’t her didn’t even seem appealing anymore. All he could do was compare every woman he met to the woman who had become the center of his affections. And that sucked because as much as he wanted and loved her, she didn’t want to speak to him because he was messing things up with her boyfriend.

He almost went through with a hook up at the bar. Talked a girl up for a minute and was about to ask her to come home with him when she mentioned that she was from Boston, and he decided the only girl he wanted that was from Boston was Jo. So, he finished his drinks with Jackson and decided to head home. The drive there was uneventful and quiet, a nice change from the usually busy roads that are characteristic of Seattle. He parked in his driveway and made his way up the porch to the front door when he saw a figure sitting on the swing. 

He sighed, “Oh man, you’re killing me. I’m trying to leave you alone. I’m trying to get out of your life, but you’re everywhere. And now you show up here to tell me the same thing. Well, guess what...”

He stopped in his tracks when she lifted her head, exposing her bruised face. She looked at him with tears in her eyes, “Can I stay here? Please.”

He could’ve sworn his heart stopped in that moment. It felt like someone punched him in the gut. Seeing Jo like this wasn’t natural. Jo was strong. Jo was tough. Jo was nothing if not caring, and she didn’t deserve to be treated as anything less than priceless. It took him a second to process her words, but once he did, he was operating on autopilot. He doesn’t remember how he got her up from the porch and inside the house. He doesn’t remember taking her up the stairs or having her sit down on the bed or going to get some ice for her face. All he could focus on was the fact that her douche bag boyfriend hit her. 

It made his blood boil. He was angry that a guy would ever think it was okay to hit his girlfriend. He was angry that someone would ever lay a hand on Jo. Jo. This woman that he was completely in love with but too scared to tell because like he said before, he always screwed himself out of everything good. Someone hurt her. Peckwell hurt her. He wasn’t going to stand for that. He tucked her into his bed and made his way down the stairs and out the door to confront Myers. 

*****

To say he wasn’t expecting to find Peckwell in the condition he found him in was an understatement. The guy had been beaten half to death and was gonna have quite the recovery. Thankfully though, he wasn’t going to press charges. Shepherd may not have liked the fact that Alex threatened him, but he didn’t see anything wrong with what he had done. He felt good about it, because he was protecting Jo. He meant what he said to her when he got back to his house that night before the tree crashed into his living room. Peckwell might be dead if Jo hadn’t gotten to him first. 

Part of him cursed the tree in his living room, while the other one felt like he had been saved by the bell. As he stood in the NICU watching Jo teach parents how to bag their babies, he shook his head and tried to focus on his best friend’s baby so that he wouldn’t do something stupid, like say, “I love you.”

Some hours passed and finally the NICU generators turned on. The babies were hooked back onto the ventilators and everyone took a sigh of relief, knowing that everything was going to be just fine. He did his rounds on the infants and proceeded to go check on some of his older patients as well. After some time of that, he decided to go look for Jo. He hadn’t seen her in the last hour since the generators turned on. He found her staring out the window of one of the storage closets that still seemed to be lacking sufficient electricity. He walked up next to her and stood there in silence. 

“This place looks so different in the dark,” she exhaled, rubbing her hands together nervously.

“Yeah,” he agreed. There was a short pause where he could feel the discomfort and awkwardness radiating from the two of them. “You think the tree ruined my couch?”

His question seemed to have the desired effect because Jo let out a laugh, “I think it ruined your entire living room.”

“Listen, I have to tell you something.” 

“No, you don’t.”

“You don’t even know what I’m gonna say,” He retorted.

“I think I do and you shouldn’t,” she turned to face him, pleading with her eyes.

“Jo...”

“I’ll mess it up, Alex,” she shook her head, voice cracking slightly. “I mess everything good in my life up and we work as friends really well and... I don’t want to mess that up.”

“You won’t mess anything up,” he assured her. “Last night before the tree, you asked me a question. You wanted to hear me say the words, so I’m... saying them. Right now...”

She watched him open and close his mouth dumbly, no words coming out, “I don’t hear anything.”

“Shut up.”

“Okay but...”

“I’m serious.”

“Fine.”

“I love you,” he stated with such certainty that she would never be able to question the sentiment. Her face broke out into a smile and his heart began to pound heavily. He didn’t hesitate in bringing her into his arms and finally kissing her. 

He knew it instantly. In that moment, he knew exactly why every relationship he had ever been in never worked out. He knew exactly why he could never be his complete and authentic self with anyone else. He knew exactly why he couldn’t get help but love this woman. He knew exactly why he couldn’t get her out of his head. He knew exactly why he had to go through everything that he went through to reach this specific moment in his life. 

Kissing Jo was like having a spiritual experience. And in a sense, it was. She was his soulmate, without a shadow of a doubt. She was the part of him that was missing all along. She was the one he had been waiting for all of his life. And now he had her, and she had him. That was everything. 

Immersed in the moment and fueled by the small whimpers coming out of her, he deepened the kiss, hoping to express everything he was feeling. He’s sure she felt it too, because she kissed him back with just as much fervor and desire. When they finally broke the kiss, he rested his forehead against hers, breathing heavily. Opening his eyes, he looked to see her staring back him with the most tender look on her face. He gave her the tiniest smile, which sent her into a fit of giggles.

Taking a deep breath she opened her mouth to speak, “Woah.”

He chuckled and kissed her cheek softly, “Yeah.”

Her hands cupped his face and she rubbed her nose against his, “I can’t believe it’s you. I never thought I’d meet you. I thought I was too messed up.”

“If you think you’re too messed up, you obviously haven’t been paying attention to my life,” he pointed out. 

She rolled her eyes at him, “Oh shush. I’m serious... I wanted it to be you, but I was scared. I was scared that I’d be wrong and that I’d be left alone, all over again.”

“Me too,” Alex admitted. “I was scared to try this and not be enough.”

“You’re more than enough, Alex. You’re everything.” 

So this is what it was like to be with the right person. The irony dawned on him as his caressed her face and leaned in to kiss her again. His ex-wife had once told him that he wasn’t good enough and left him even when he had poured his heart and soul into being the person she wanted him to be. But Jo, oh Jo... she loved him for exactly who he was. For all the mess and crazy. For all the faults and less than stellar parts of his personality. And she never once made him feel like he couldn’t accomplish whatever he set his mind to. This is what it was like to have a partner in every sense of the word. 

He’d be content to stay there forever, but the moment was cut short when his pager went off, signifying that one of his post-op kids needed attention. They broke apart and he let out a small groan, “I’m sorry. Mikey Nelson’s got some complications. I’ve got to go.”

“It’s okay, I should probably get back to the NICU and help Dr. Robbins prepare the nurses and doctors coming in for this shift,” she gave him a quick peck as straightened her scrubs. “But that shouldn’t take long so... meet me in an on-call room in an hour?”

His face broke out into a large smirk, “Oh... I’ll be there.” 

God he really loved this woman.


	3. Part 3 - where you have a clock counting down the minutes

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So... this fic is insanely long, but I am so excited for you guys to read it. I had such a great time writing it and hope that you continue to enjoy this series!

The day his clock showed up, he was excited. At the age of thirteen, he’d been a little older than most. For a while, he didn’t think he had a soulmate. Most other kids got their clocks at twelve years old. Yet on his twelfth birthday, when he woke up and saw his empty wrist he was disappointed to see that his hadn’t. No, instead his clock showed up on a random Tuesday morning, about four months after his thirteenth birthday. His excitement was short-lived though. Because according to his clock, he wouldn’t meet his soulmate for at least two decades.

_20:05:17:6:49_

Twenty years, five months, seventeen days, six hours, and forty-nine minutes away to be exact. He’d be thirty-three by the time he met the woman he was supposed to spend the rest of his life with. This didn’t sit right with Alex. He’d thought for sure the universe would favor him considering he’d had the crappiest childhood. The least the universe could do was grant him a soulmate sooner than twenty years from now. 

It was frustrating when he got to college and it felt like everyone he knew was meeting their soulmate. It was even more frustrating when he got to medical school and the majority of his friends were in nice, loving, soul-bonded relationships while he was out partying and sleeping around. He’d never admit it, but as fun as sleeping around was, all Alex had ever wanted was the sureness and clarity of a soulmate bond. His whole life, he wondered what it was like to be loved for exactly who he was. He wondered what it was like to have someone stay. He wondered what it was like to have someone sane. The partying and the girls just so happened to serve as a useful distraction for the fact that he was years away from meeting the one person who just might stick around. 

When he started working at Seattle Grace, he didn’t do much to change who he was. If anything, he was worse than before. With only seven years, three months, five days, ten hours, and thirty-six minutes left to meet his soulmate, Alex was growing even more restless. He couldn’t handle the idea of walking around the hospital as all of his friends met their soulmates before he did. Meredith had already met her’s, Izzie’s clock said that she was three months away, Cristina’s clock said one year left, and George’s said two years. 

There wasn’t much time left for them to wait. The sad and funny thing was that some of his friends found themselves in relationships with someone other than their soulmate. Meredith was trying to get over McDreamy, Cristina was doing it with Burke, George was in love with Meredith, and Izzie had tried going out with him despite the fact that she was supposed to meet her guy very soon. It kind of sucked too, because he could see himself liking her enough to actually try something more than a one night stand. 

Knowing that Izzie would be meeting her soulmate very soon didn’t make it much easier when she finally did. The guy came in the form of a bedridden cardiac patient who was on the brink of death. If Alex thought the universe was screwed up for making him wait so long to meet his soulmate, it was even more screwed up for giving Izzie a soulmate that might not live past his next surgery. That was all kinds of messed up and shitty that he didn’t even want to go into. As horrible as it sounded though, he hoped that maybe Izzie’s soulmate would kick the bucket and die. Then maybe he’d have a chance at something more than just meaningless. 

And they did get the chance at it. Denny died and Izzie was a wreck. She ended up making some questionable decisions, got George to cheat on his wife—but not his soulmate—with her, and nearly got herself fired multiple times over. Alex on the other hand, had lived through a hookup with Addison Montgomery, a strange—regrettable—relationship with a patient by the name of Rebecca Pope, and had even hooked up with Meredith’s sister Lexie a couple times. So when they finally got together, Alex thought that this could be it. Maybe it could be enough. Maybe Izzie could be enough for him, and he could be enough for her. 

Things didn’t go as planned, though. Izzie got cancer and started hallucinating Denny. So they got married and tried to make the best out of a bad situation, then George died on the very day he was supposed to meet his soulmate—saving her life apparently. He doesn’t know if it was the cancer or the soul bond that attached her to Denny that caused it or even her friendship with O’Malley, but one morning he woke up and she didn’t. Alex woke up and turned around to shake Izzie awake, but she wouldn’t wake up. Her body was cold. She’d died sometime in the middle of the night and he never noticed.

That stuck with him for a long time. He felt like he should’ve been able to save her. He was a doctor for crying out loud. A doctor whose wife died in her sleep as he laid right beside her. He was a widower now and it was hell. His heart ached and he became a bigger asshole than before. And hence started the string of endless women all over again. He tried to date Lexie Grey, and it worked for a little while. But then the shooting happened and Lexie went crazy and Alex was trying to understand how he survived and so many others didn’t. He added that to his laundry list of failed attempts at love. 

Then there was Lucy—the one who stole his job. After that he gave up on trying to have a real relationship. He realized it was pointless to try making a connection with someone that wasn’t soulmate. All it brought was hurt and pain that he didn’t have the patience for. He slept around again, waiting for the moment when he’d finally meet his soulmate and maybe, just maybe, he search would be over.

The week before he was supposed to meet his soulmate, he decided to take advantage of the little bit of time he had left and slept with a lot of the new interns. Sure, he felt a little bad every time he looked down at his wrist, but he was trying to brace himself for the worst case scenario. The worst case scenario being that his soulmate hated him or that she was a horrible person and they didn’t work out. If his worst fears came true he wanted to at least have something to soften the blow. It may sound depressing, but that’s how it worked. And Alex had been through enough in his life to know that life was rarely ever fair or full of hope. 

*****

She was sixteen when her clock finally showed up on her wrist. For the longest time, she thought that maybe there just wasn’t someone out there for her. Most kids got their clocks at twelve years old. They’d wake up the morning of their twelfth birthday to find a clock there counting down the years, months, days, hours, and minutes until one met their soulmate. She tried to tell herself not to be discouraged. After all, she’d been left at a fire station as an infant. Who knows when her real birthday was? So, for about two weeks she held onto the tiniest bit of hope that one day she’d wake up and it would be there. 

When the clock didn’t come in, it only reinforced everything she’d ever believe about herself. That she was unlovable. She was broken. She was unwanted. She was a waste of space. Those feelings intensified when her peers realized that her clock was missing. They made up mean jokes and rumors about soulmate-less Brooke. It was so bad that the family she’d been staying with at the time sent her away. They didn’t want a “defective” child in their home. 

For about four years, she wore long sleeves. She didn’t want anyone to see her wrist. She didn’t want to see her own wrist and be reminded of the fact that she had no one in this world. That’s why it was such a surprise when her clock showed up on her wrist. 

She remembered the day vividly. It was four in the morning and she’d been attempting to get some sleep while she heard the junkies talking outside her car. She’d just burrowed a little further into her blankets in an effort to cover herself so that no one would realize she was living there when she felt it. There was a dull ache in her wrist and then the sound of a clock chiming. After the sounding stopped, she was scared to look down. She was scared to look and realize that it had all been a figment of her imagination. 

It wasn’t though. It was definitely there. The clock displayed the numbers brightly on her wrist for all to see. The countdown to meeting her soulmate was there. It was real. She had someone. For the first time in her life she thought that maybe she’d have someone. But when she realized the number of years before she’d meet him, she grew discouraged. Ten years was a long time. A very long time.

_10:02:30:8:57_

Of course she’d have to wait a decade to meet her soulmate. As if her life wasn’t already difficult, as if she didn’t need for someone to love her right now. Maybe that’s why she got caught up with Paul in the first place. She just wanted so badly for someone to love her that she ended up in an abusive marriage for about two years before she did something about it.

Of all the decisions she’d made in her life, getting with Paul was the worst one. He was harsh and hateful and deceptively charming. He’d told her exactly what she wanted to hear and she believed him. She ate up every false promise and calculated compliment. Her friends had not been happy with her, but she didn’t care. They told her to wait, to hold out for her soulmate, but Brooke wasn’t sure she believed in them anymore. 

Paul didn’t have a soulmate. He was one of the very few people in the world that didn’t have a clock at all. He’d convinced her that it was all a fantasy. A childish daydream that would soon fade away like everything else in the world. For the most part, she believed him. 

A part of her tried to hold on to the hope that maybe there was someone better for her out there than Paul. It all changed when she became a mother, though. The only thing that was supposed to be stronger than a soul bond was the bond between parents and their children. She could not possibly understand how or why her mother had abandoned her like she did. She couldn’t comprehend how you’d let go because the moment she held her child in her arms, she knew that she’d never be able to give this up. 

The road to motherhood wasn’t easy, though. It was full of pain and suffering and complications she’d never anticipated. Originally, she wasn’t going to keep the baby. She had decided that after being beaten so bad that she had landed in the hospital. There was no way she could raise a child in the environment she was living in. For weeks, she walked around fearful of the decision that was looming over her. One day, while she was in the car with Paul they got into a horrible accident. She’d made it out mostly okay. Paul on the other hand sustained a severe injuries and was declared dead on arrival. 

The death of her husband was not sad for her. If anything, it was liberating. She was a pregnant senior in college and suddenly inherited all of his money and his property. Of course, she was alone again, but for the first time in her life loneliness didn’t seem as daunting. As soon as she graduated with her degree in biology, she sold the house, their rings, and all of Paul’s belongings and hauled ass out of New Jersey. 

She was about seven months pregnant when she finally moved into her brand new apartment in Boston. For a while after moving, she grappled with her identity. She didn’t want anything tying her to the life she’d left behind. She didn’t want her child to bear the legacy of hurt and pain that she’d left. Brooke Stadler didn’t feel like her anymore. That name was attached to the despair that she vowed to leave behind for the sake of the life she was about to bring into the world. 

It was during one quest for baby names when she stumbled upon one that resonated with her. _Josephine, God will increase_. _Jo_ , for short. Yes, that was it. No more standing back and letting people take advantage of her. She would increase. She would grow so tall that she would make a fool out of anyone who ever said she would never be enough. 

So, she became Josephine. A last name would be a little more difficult. Jo knew that she didn’t want to keep the last name Stadler. She briefly considered Schmidt—after her high school teacher whom she had kept in contact with, but decided against that. She settled on Wilson. It was the name of the chief of the fire station where she’d been left as a child. That was it. That was her name. _Josephine Brooke Wilson_. 

Her name change was approved about a week before she gave birth to her son on July 16, 2007. Yes, she had a boy. A little boy with the sweetest dimples and the craziest head full of hair. He had her eyes and her nose and her ears. Jo fell in love with him instantly. At twenty-two years old she became a mother to the most beautiful baby boy she’d ever laid eyes on. 

She named him Liam Michael Wilson. Liam was a good baby, and she was grateful for that. It was difficult raising a child on her own while simultaneously trying to do well in med school. Harvard Medical School, to be specific. In the mornings she’d drop Liam off at daycare and pick him up after her classes were over. Her life consisted of going to school, being a mom, and working part time at the daycare Liam attended. She didn’t go out or party. She didn’t sleep around or start anything serious. There was no time and she definitely did not have the motivation to try harder. 

On the day of her medical school graduation, she walked across the stage hand in hand with her almost four year old son. She smiled wide and almost cried after her son told her how proud he was of her. She’d done it. She was finally a doctor. 

And so began the next chapter of their lives. Jo had matched with Seattle Grace Mercy West’s surgical residency program. She was excited and nervous at the thought of moving across the country with her son. Her whole life, she’d lived on the east coast. It was time to leave this place and move on to the next thing. 

*****

“Today’s the day,” Jackson walked into the attendings lounge and clapped Alex on the back. 

“What’s today?” Webber asked as he poured himself some coffee. 

“Today’s the day Evil Spawn gets to meet his soulmate,” Cristina supplied. 

April gasped, “Oh my goodness! Finally.”

“Yeah it only took him thirty-three years,” Meredith snickered as she put her stuff into her locker. 

"Awe, Karev is becoming a man today," Mark teased and slapped Alex on the shoulder.

“Maybe this means he’ll stop being an ass that sleeps with all the interns,” Callie called out from her spot on the couch. 

“Oh shush. Might I remind you that you slept with me once. So you're no better,” Alex sent Callie a pointed look.

“And now I no longer sleep with men,” Callie lifted her hands in mock surprise.

The room full of doctors laughed at Callie's comment. Alex on the other hand rolled his eyes, "Whatever. You guys are way too invested in this soulmate thing."

"Because we all already found ours. We want you to be happy. You of all people deserves something happy," Meredith smiled warmly at Alex. "So, stop complaining and let us be happy and excited for you."

Alex knew that his friends just wanted what was best for him. They'd been by his side through a lot of really crappy things. When his wife died, Meredith opened up her home again for him to stay. Cristina hugged him—which was a miracle in and of itself. Kepner and Avery, who he wasn't even close to made it very clear that they would be there for him if he needed it. So many more of his friends and colleagues did the same.

“How much time do you have left on your clock?” Bailey asked, trying to get as many details from Alex as possible.

Alex looked down at his clock and read the numbers. It was strange to see mostly zeros. For years, he’d seen the clock full of numbers counting down very slowly. Today though, it seems as if the time had flown by.

_00:00:00:04:37_

“Four hours and thirty-seven minutes,” Alex replied. “Which means that you all will be too busy doing your jobs to pay attention to me when I meet her. If this is even real and I meet her.”

Meanwhile, Jo was in the locker room with her fellow interns getting ready for the day. She had just taken off her shirt and was about to put her scrub top on when she heard Stephanie gasp and grab her arm, “Oh my God.

Today is the day. Guys, Jo meets her soulmate today!”

“Really?” Leah jumped up and squealed. “No why didn’t you say anything? We would’ve made a big deal about it.”

“That’s exactly why I didn’t,” Jo removed her hand from Stephanie’s grasp and continued to get dressed for the day. “It’s not that big of a deal. Calm down.”

“Not that big of a deal?” Stephanie looked at her as if she had three heads. “Jo. This is a huge deal. This is it. This is the most important day of your life. Why aren’t you more excited about this?”

“Look, I’ve been burned one to many times in my life. It’s all a scam. It doesn’t mean anything,” Jo shook her head. “And it’s not the most important day of my life. The most important day of my life was the day I gave birth to my son. That’s the most important bond. It’s more important and stronger than a soul bond. So unless my soulmate magically bonds with my son, then it’s meaningless.”

Shane looked at Jo sadly, “There’s nothing wrong with trying find your own version of happiness. You’re allowed to let yourself be loved.”

“Yeah,” Heather agreed. “You of all people deserves to meet their person.”

“How much time is left on your clock?” Leah asked.

Sighing Jo looked down and read it out loud, “Four hours and thirty-seven minutes.”

_00:00:00:04:37_

“I wonder who it is,” Heather tilted her head to the side. “You’d have to meet him here in the hospital. Maybe it’s another doctor or a nurse. Ooh! Maybe even a patient! I’ve heard a couple stories of a few doctors that used to work here before us that met their soulmates while they were patients in the hospital.”

“Gosh, I hope not,” Jo’s eyes widened. “I have a kid. I don’t have time to take care of a sick soulmate.”

“I highly doubt it’s going to be a patient,” Stephanie assured. “It’s probably one another doctor. Which doctors are still single?”

“Well, there’s Franklin from derm, Harrison from anesthesiology, that one guy Myers from OB, Johnson and Archer from Radiology, some others I don’t remember, and Karev," Leah replied.

"How do you even know that?" Jo made a face. "Actually, I don't want to know."

"She probably slept with all of them," Stephanie smirked.

Leah shrugged, "Hey, I don't meet my soulmate for two more years. I'm taking advantage of all the freedom I have left."

"No offense, but I don't want your sloppy seconds," Jo closed her locker and put on her lab coat. "I haven't had sex in... I can't even remember. But, I would still prefer it if my soulmate didn't sleep with all of my friends first."

"I don't know, I kind of hope my soulmate is a man-whore," Heather thought out loud. The others turned to look at her strangely. "What? I do. That means he'll be good in bed. That's important. I'm going to be stuck with him for the rest of my life. He's got to know what he's doing."

The interns busted out in laughter and chatted for a few more minutes before their resident, Lexie Grey walked in, “Hey guys. Today you all start new rotations so listen out for your assignments. Edwards you’re with Grey, Ross with Avery, Brooks with Bailey, Murphy with Robbins, and Wilson you’re with Yang.”

The interns nodded and all made their ways to find their attendings. Jo walked over to where Yang was standing in the Cardiac ICU and smiled warmly, “Dr. Yang, I’m on your service today.”

“Oh yes, Wilson right? I’ve heard some good things about you from Hunt and Torres. Make sure you keep up and don’t screw anything up,” Cristina instructed. “I’ve got things to do and lots of patients to see so there’s no time for messing around. Come on, before we’re late for rounds.”

The next few hours were okay. Jo mostly kept an eye on Yang’s pre and post ops while Yang worked on studying for a new procedure she was going to preform later that afternoon. The day was going by so smoothly that she forgot to take a look at her clock to see how much time was left. She was about to look down when she heard her pager go off, _Pit 911_. Jo jumped up from her seat at the nurse’s station and hurried down to the ER, Dr. Yang following close behind her.

They pulled on their trauma gowns and hurried into the trauma room they’d been paged to. The room was a buzz with multiple doctors from various specialties looking at a kid who seemed to be somewhere around eleven or twelve. Derek Shepherd was there, Kepner was there, Torres was there, and Karev.

“What do we got?” Yang asked as she walked into the room.

“Brandon Miller, eleven years old. He jumped off a balcony while on a school field trip because his friends dared him to,” Karev sounded off, not looking up from the kid he was examining. “He’s got splenic rupture that I’m going to have go in and repair, wrist fracture, an injury to his spine that’s putting pressure on the cord, a few broken ribs and a pneumothorax. I need you to run an echo on his heart to see if he can even withstand the stress of surgery.”

For some reason, Jo’s heart rate picked up a little when she heard his voice. She’s seen Karev from afar, but in the past few months that she’d been working at Seattle Grace Mercy West, she’d never been on his service before. He seemed like a great doctor. She’d heard wonderful things about the projects he’d established and his dedication and commitment to his patients. She snapped out of her thoughts when she heard Karev yell out instructions.

“Can someone insert a damn chest tube?”

Yang looked at Jo and motioned to get to work, “Wilson, you know how to insert a chest tube?”

“Yes ma’am,” Jo nodded.

“Okay, then do it. We don’t have time to waste,” Yang commanded.

Jo looked around the room for the supplies and was handed a tray by one of the nurses. She made her way up towards the kid and proceeded to insert the tube. She was about to move out of the way when bumped into Karev.

“Do you mind?” Karev sneered gave her a sideways glance. He didn’t have time for this. He wanted to get out of this trauma room as quickly as possible. He was supposed to meet his soulmate any minute now, and he couldn’t do that if he was stuck in here fixing a kid in a room full of all his friends. He couldn’t miss their encounter. He’d been waiting for this exact moment for decades and he’d be damned if he missed it because some intern was in his way.

“Sorry,” Jo apologized.

Alex felt a jolt of electricity run through him as he heard her voice. Looking up, he finally decided to spare more than a quick glance at the intern. Feeling that someone’s eyes were on her, Jo looked up and locked eyes with Karev. She felt her heart and breathing pick up, then skip a few beats, before returning to normal. Alex felt a stirring within his chest and stopped what he was doing to stare at her for just a moment.

That’s when the dinging started. It was a low chime sort of sound. It grew progressively louder and was getting on Alex’s nerves. He broke eye contact with the intern and looked around for the source of the noise. With all the commotion, he was unsure if anyone else heard it. He looked around at the monitors the kid had strapped to him, trying to determine what was going off.

“What the hell is that noise? Can someone please figure out what freaking monitor is making that weird noise and turn it off?” Alex growled in annoyance.

His request made the room go quiet, allowing everyone to hear for themselves exactly what was going on. Alex watched as one by one, all of his friends’ eyes widened in surprise. They looked at each other strangely, not saying anything.

“Will someone please turn that freaking monitor off?” Alex continued to work on stabilizing the kid’s injuries.

“Dr. Karev, that’s not one of the monitors,” nurse Tyler spoke, motioning to Alex’s clock that was covered by his trauma gown.

He stepped away from his patient and pulled up the sleeve of his trauma gown. His numbers were at zero. How the hell were his numbers at zero? When did he meet her? He’d been stuck in this room for the past half hour. He was in a room full of friends and veteran nurses he’d known for years.

Jo took a deep breath when she realized what happened. She removed her own sleeve and looked at the clock on her wrist. Sure enough, all zeros. Jo froze in fear and confusion as a steady ding came from her clock. After a couple seconds, she looked up at Karev who was still lost in thought.

There was a gasp somewhere in the background. It sounded like Kepner, “Oh. My. God.”

“Holy shit,” Yang’s voice rang out.

“Woah!” Torres exclaimed.

“I’ll be damned,” Shepherd chuckled.

A couple of the nurses mumbled their own surprise as Jo continued to stare at her supposed soulmate with wide eyes. Finally, after a few seconds, he looked up at her.

Jo felt it immediately. She felt the bond attach itself instantly. The thing that she’d convinced herself wasn’t real, the thing that seemed too much like a fairy tale to actually exist in real life, was happening to her. It all made sense. The shivers and butterflies she felt when she heard his voice. The heart palpitations she experienced and the sensation of breathlessness, were all her body’s way of syncing up their heart beats.

Alex couldn’t believe it. He did meet her. She was here. She was the intern he’d bumped into. He’d been so caught up and desperate to meet her that when he did, he missed it. But then it made sense. The jolt of electricity he felt when he heard her speak. The captivating call of her eyes. Her gorgeous, hazel eyes. He didn’t think he’d ever seen more beautiful eyes. The longer he looked into them, the more he felt the soul bond increase. It was strong, and unlike anything he’d ever really experienced before. It was instant and all consuming. It was real.

Soon, the dinging ceased. It was no longer needed. They had acknowledged each other. They had met.

*****

They never had a chance to talk after that moment. Brandon—the kid—began de-sating and needed to be rushed to the OR immediately. The echo he’d called Cristina in to run would have to wait. There was no time to waste, or he wouldn’t make it. It killed Alex to leave without being able to say anything to her. He wanted to get to know her and hear her story. He barely knew her name—and it was only because he asked while on his way to the OR with Torres, Kepner, and Shepherd. They hadn’t stopped talking about his soulmate throughout the entire time he was in the operating room. Thankfully, he and April were able to resolve the kid’s internal bleeding, leaving Shepherd and Torres to do the real work and try to keep Brandon from being paralyzed.

Alex wanted to find her. Jo Wilson. That was her name. He asked around before he was directed to the OR board. Sure enough, her name was listed as the resident in OR 4 with Cristina. In the hours he’d been in surgery, she’d been pulled into one of her own. Sighing, Alex decided that he could use this time to talk to someone. He needed to vent. He needed to find Meredith.

He ran around the hospital for about half hour before realizing where she was. Alex made his way to the hospital daycare and smiled as he showed his ID and walked to where Meredith was playing with Zola. Meredith was sitting on a bean bag chair while Zola was on the floor working on a puzzle. He hurried over to the corner they were in and sat in the bean bag chair across from Meredith.

“Dude, I’ve been looking for you everywhere.”

“What is it Alex? I’m trying to spend what little free time I have with my daughter. Can it wait?”

“No, it can’t,” Alex rolled up the sleeve of his lab coat and showed her his arm. “I met her.”

“Oh my God!” Meredith gasped and dropped the barbie doll that was in her hand. “You met her? Who is she?”

“She’s an intern. Jo Wilson,” Alex shared. “I don’t really know a lot about her. I didn’t even get a chance to talk to her because my patient needed to get up to the OR because he was de-sating on us.”

“Wilson is your soulmate?” Meredith’s eyes widened. “She was the intern I picked for the intern appy. She did really well until she freaked out and froze, but I think she’ll make it. You can normally tell who’s going to make it and who isn’t. She hasn’t given me any reason to believe otherwise. What are you doing here talking to me? Go find her.”

“I did try to find her. But then I found out she was in OR 4 with Cristina, who just so happened to be there when we met,” Alex grimaced.

Meredith let out a peel of laughter, “Oh, Cristina is never going to let you live it down. She’s probably airing out all your dirty laundry as we speak. Who knows what she’s told Wilson about you?”

Alex narrowed his eyes, “Oh shush. I sure hope not. I don’t need my soulmate thinking that I’m an ass before she even meets me.”

“Hey! There are children present. Language!” Meredith warned motioning to the children playing around them.

“You act as if I don’t work with children all day.”

Meredith rolled her eyes. Being friends with Alex really was a pain sometimes, but she wouldn’t have it any other way. She was happy for him. He’d finally met his soulmate. He was finally going to get the happiness he deserved. She just hoped that the universe knew what it was doing when it chose Jo Wilson as his soulmate, “Hold on… you said your soulmate is one of the interns?”

“Yeah? So what? You were an intern when you met Derek,” Alex shrugged. “It happens.”

“No, I know that. That’s not what I’m talking about,” Meredith shook her head. “Didn’t you sleep with half the intern class?”

“Oh crap… You don’t think she knows, right?”

“Are you kidding? Don’t you remember what it was like to be an intern? Gossip around here spreads like wildfire,” Meredith leaned back in her bean bag chair. “I’m positive she knows exactly how many of her friends you’ve slept with.”

“Which means she already knows how big of a douche I am,” Alex groaned. “You know, on some level, I always knew that being a man-whore was going to come back and bite me in the ass.”

Meredith was going to open her mouth to respond when they heard a crash followed by a child crying in the background. Being the peds surgeon that he was, Alex jumped up from his bean bag chair and scanned the room for the source of the crying. There was a young woman holding a boy who looked to be about four. He had a nasty head lac that would probably need stitches.

“Can someone get ahold of an intern to come take a look at this kid? And page his parents?” One of the daycare workers yelled out.

Not wanting an intern working on this kid’s face, Alex decided to step in, “Hey. No need to call an intern. I’m a peds surgeon. I’ll take a look at him and get him stitched up. You don’t need an intern leaving a nasty scar on his face. Just page his parents while I check him out.”

The daycare instructor, Bethany, nodded in appreciation and Alex walked them over to a nearby exam room. He asked a nurse to bring him a suture kit and had Bethany place the crying boy on the bed. The kid was cute. He had wild brown hair and big hazel eyes that looked up at him in awe and wonder, “Hey kiddo, my name is Dr. Alex. What’s yours?”

“Liam,” the little boy responded, the tears that had once been running down his face now dried.

For some reason, Alex felt a connection to this kid. He couldn’t explain it. Of course, he’d bonded with patients in the past, but this was different. He’d known this boy for all of two minutes and already felt his protective instincts kick in. Alex decided to try to make some conversation, “Well, hi Liam. I see that you hurt your head a bit there. Do you think you can follow some instructions that I give you?”

Liam attempted a nod but winced in pain a bit, “Yes Dr. Awex.”

Alex seriously did not know what was wrong with him. Every time this little boy opened his mouth, he felt the love and affection he had for him increase. _What the hell is wrong you? He’s not even your kid. You find your soulmate and all of a sudden you are overwhelmed by the desire to procreate_? Shaking the thoughts out of his head, Alex looked over to Bethany, “Can you go make sure one of his parents are on their way? I’m going to do a quick neuro exam and some stitches. They might want to be here for that.”

The two boys watched as Bethany nodded and walked out the room. Liam looked back up at Alex, “Is she getting my mommy?”

“Yeah buddy, she is. Now how about you say we make sure you didn’t hit your head too hard when you fell,” Alex proceeded to go about his exam while trying to divert Liam’s attention from the needles he was about to use to close up the head lac.

Meanwhile in OR 4, Jo had been trying her best to ignore the looks and questions Dr. Yang was sending her way. The first two hours had been mostly quiet, with Yang only speaking in order to teach or give instructions. Now that they were entering their third hour in surgery, Yang seemed to have loosened up a little bit, “Oh come on, give me something. You are Alex Karev’s soulmate, who just so happens to be one of my best friends. I care about him and I love him—if you ever say that I will deny it. What’s your story?”

This was getting tiring. All Jo wanted was to distract Yang long enough to stop asking questions. Jo was this close to giving in and answering Yang’s questions when a nurse rushed into the room, “Dr. Wilson, Ms. Bethany from daycare called to let you know that your son fell and sustained a head injury. He’s being checked out by a doctor in an exam room nearby the daycare. The doctor said that he’s okay, but he’s going to require some stitches.”

Jo looked up at the nurse with a panicked expression, “Oh my God. What the hell happened?”

“I’m not sure of all the details, but your son was requesting your presence.”

“Well that explains part of the story,” Cristina mumbled to herself. She looked over at the intern standing in front of her. “Go, take care of your kid. We’ll be okay here. Take the rest of the day off while you’re at it.”

“Thank you so much Dr. Yang,” Jo rushed out of the OR and scrubbed out quickly. She hurried out of the scrub room into the hallway and made her way to the elevators. She tapped her foot impatiently as she waited for the elevator to arrive.

As soon as she made it to the daycare, Jo asked for her son’s whereabouts. She had finally reached the door of the exam room when she heard a familiar peel of laughter on the other side. She breathed a sigh of relief when she realized that her son was laughing and steadied herself as she opened the door.

Alex had been having the time of his life stitching Liam’s head lac up. Sure, he was great with kids, his job required it. But spending time with this kid is different. Alex was sure that he’d never clicked with a kid as much as this one. And he was kind of hilarious. The four-year-old was very bright for his age and had a sense of humor better than most adults. In the fifteen minutes that had passed, Alex learned that he and Liam had the same favorite color (green), favorite ice cream flavor (s’mores), they even shared a middle name. On top of that they were both obsessed with babies—Alex was a peds surgeon and Liam said that he was constantly asking his mom when they would have a baby.

Alex had just promised to sneak Liam up to the hospital nursery when the door opened. With his back was to the door, Alex spoke to the parent he’d assumed had walked in, “Oh, hey. I’m Dr. Karev. I just was in the daycare visiting my niece when your son fell. He got a few stitches, but other than that he’s just fine.”

Finally turning around, Alex came face to face with his wide-eyed soulmate. Confused, he stared at her dumbly as she stood unmoving like a deer in headlights. The moment was broken when Liam look up and grinned, “Mommy!”

Breaking out of her trance, Jo looked up at the little boy sitting on the exam table, “Hey baby! I heard you took a fall in daycare. Are you okay?”

“Yup,” Liam nodded happily. “Dr. Awex fixed me up! He’s so funny, mommy. We wike wots of the same tings and he pwomised to take me to see the babies!”

“Really? You love babies don’t you,” Jo smiled at her son and glanced quickly at Alex.

“Uh huh! Dr. Awex fixes babies,” Liam grinned brightly. “I want to fix babies too!”

“You do, huh? Well, I’m sure he’d love to teach you one day,” Jo wrapped her son in her arms and hugged him closed. She looked up at Alex, “Was he good?”

“Oh yeah, he was great,” Alex gave her one of his crooked grins. “So, he’s yours?”

“Yeah, I had him a couple months before I started med school. It’s just us,” Jo felt her heart pick up in speed the more she looked at him. If this whole soulmate thing was true, the Jo was sure that his heart was beating equally as quickly. “Thank you for taking care of him.”

“Of course,” Alex took a deep breath. This was all too surreal. He was standing in an exam room with his soulmate and her son and he’d never felt more at home. He didn’t want this to end. “You know, I was telling Liam here that maybe I’d try to get him some ice cream. What if we all go together? I know this really great place a couple blocks away. I’ve taken my niece, Zola there a couple times and she loves it.”

Jo felt like she was dreaming. There was no way this was real. There was no way that her soulmate wanted to take her and her son out for ice cream. This didn’t happen in real life. It only happened in all the rom coms she’d grown to despise over the years. Men were never this good, but somehow, she could tell that Alex was. Jo turned to her son who looked at her with pleading eyes. Deciding that it wouldn’t hurt to say no, she smiled, “I think the two of us would like that very much.”

And they did enjoy it. The trio looked like the sweetest little family as they went out for ice cream that night. Both Jo and Alex had been commented to on separate occasions by multiple people regarding their adorable dynamics. It was almost strange how normal it felt to be out and about with each other. Maybe it was because Liam was there acting as a buffer, but neither Jo nor Alex could remember why they’d been skeptical in the first place.

Alex offered to give Jo and Liam a ride home after leaving the ice cream parlor. They’d taken the bus to the hospital that morning and Jo had been planning on taking it back when Alex insisted on getting them home safely. When they finally arrived at Jo’s apartment, Liam refused to go inside and go to sleep unless Alex tucked him into bed. Jo had tried reasoning with Liam, but Alex assured her that it was fine, and he wouldn’t mind reading Liam a bedtime story or two.

So, that’s how she found herself standing in the doorway of her son’s room, watching as her new soulmate laughed with her son as he read a book to Liam. Jo’s heart fluttered at the scene. Her soulmate and her son had bonded in a matter of hours. Her soulmate actually existed and he was here in her home, tucking her son into bed as if he’d done it a hundred times before.

When Alex was done, he pulled the covers up over Liam’s small frame and ruffled his hair. He turned off the light and walked out the door, finding Jo standing in the living room. He stuffed his hands in his pockets, “Hey.”

“Hey,” Jo breathed out a shaky breath. “Thanks for… everything today. You really didn’t have to do all that.”

“It was nothing,” Alex shrugged bashfully. “I—uh, I had fun.”

The stood in awkward silence for a few minutes, each person staring at the ground. It’s wasn’t that they didn’t have anything to say, it was that there were _too many_ things to say and neither one of them know where to start.

"You don't have to do this," Jo shook her head. "I come with a lot of baggage, more than you probably bargained for. I have a very complicated past and I don't trust people easily. On top of that, have a kid. He's the most important person in my life. So if you don't think you can handle all that, it's okay. I won't hold it against you. I'm giving you an out."

Alex looked at her curiously, "Are you free tomorrow night?"

"What?" Jo scrunched her eyebrows.

"Are you free tomorrow night?” Alex repeated.

“Uh—yeah,” Jo looked at him strangely. “Why?”

“Go out with me tomorrow, just us. I can ask Meredith if she can babysit. Liam can play with Zola,” Alex offered.

Jo could feel her heart beating wildly. The nerves in her stomach increasing, “Okay.”

*****

The date was a disaster. Everything that could’ve gone wrong went wrong. To be fair, Alex wasn’t really one to go on dates. Which is why he’d enlisted the help of Kepner and Robbins to set up the perfect first date. They had given him a list of suggestions of all the places he could take Jo and all the things they could do.

Of course, nothing went as planned. The restaurant they were going to eat at, didn’t have a table available. The movie they were going to watch was sold out. They missed their ferry, lost their tickets to the Seattle Great Wheel, and got stuck in traffic for about an hour.

Finally deciding to screw it, Alex ordered a pizza and fried chicken, bought a six pack of beer, and drove up to one of the cliffs just outside the city. He grabbed the blanket that was in the trunk of his car and set it outside in the grass. Jo hopped out and put the food and beers on the ground.

They spent some time talking about their pasts. They talked about their upbringing, discovering that they had a lot more in common than they would’ve thought. Alex shared about his first marriage and Jo shared hers. She told him about her name and why she chose it. They’d been making self-deprecating jokes and laughing while stargazing when it started to pour out of nowhere. They laugh and squeal as they hurry back into the car. Alex turned the heater on to help them warm up. He looked back at Jo and grimaced, "I am so sorry. This night has been a disaster. I should’ve known I would’ve screwed it up.”

“Are you kidding?” Jo looked at Alex in disbelief. “I don’t think I’ve laughed this much ever. I’ve had more fun tonight than I have in a long time.”

“Really?” Alex raised his eyebrows. “You don’t care that we’re sitting in my car, soaked, eating pizza and fried chicken while drinking a couple of beers.”

“I don’t mind at all, honestly. I prefer this to fancy restaurants and cheesy movies,” Jo smiled brightly. Looking at Alex, she felt butterflies. She felt seen, she felt heard, she felt happy. “You know, I didn’t believe in all this. I didn’t believe that there was someone out there specifically made for me. I thought it was all a made-up fairytale that people just tried so hard to hold on to because life sucks sometimes. But meeting you, talking to you… I know that I want to do this for the rest of my life.”

“I do too,” Alex gave her a crooked grin. In the past few hours, he knew he’d fallen in love with this woman. “Can I kiss you?”

Jo felt her cheeks heat up. She nodded shyly, “Yes.”

Alex leaned in and pulled Jo into a passionate kiss, leaving her breathless. Nothing had ever felt more right in her life. She wanted to stay here in his arms and never leave and so did he. Alex would give anything to stay in that moment forever.

When they finally broke apart, both were grinning like idiots. Alex tucked a piece of hair behind Jo’s ear, “That was definitely worth the twenty years I spent looking at my clock wishing I could just hurry up and meet you.” He looked at the time on the dashboard of his car. “It’s getting late. We should go pick up Liam at Mer’s and I’ll drop you guys off at your place.”

“Or… we could see if she wouldn’t mind keeping him overnight. He’s probably asleep now anyway. It would be a shame to wake him up,” Jo looked up at him mischievously. 

“It would be a shame,” Alex nodded in understanding. His face broke out into a smirk. “Guess I’ll just be taking you home instead.”

******

_One year later…._

“Okay, you remember the plan?”

“Yes, Daddy!” Liam nodded his little head at Alex. He was jumping with excitement. Today, his Daddy was going to propose to his Mommy. His Daddy wasn’t always his Daddy, though. For a long time, it was just Liam and Mommy. Now, the nice doctor that stitched up his head was his new Daddy and Liam couldn’t be happier. “Will Mommy like the ring?”

“I sure hope so, because I spent a lot of money on that thing,” Alex muttered under his breath. “You’re going to make sure that Mommy walks over here to the fountain when it’s time. Got it?”

“Got it!”

Minutes later, Alex was standing by the fountain in downtown waiting for his son to lead his soulmate to where he was waiting for them. He paced nervously as he watched them round the corner, Liam pulling on his mom’s coat sleeve to get her to hurry. As they approached, Alex took a deep breath and adjusted his tie. He smiled as the two people he loved most in the world came to a halt in front of him.

“Hi,” Alex smiled cheekily.

“Hi,” Jo beamed in return. “What are you doing here? And why are you wearing a suit?”

“I’m here because, I have something to say. And I decided to do it in public with Liam present so that I couldn’t’ chicken out,” Alex chuckled and looked down at the ground before lifting his gaze to meet Jo’s once more. “Jo, from the moment I met you, everything in my life suddenly made sense. Right then, I met the person I knew I was going to love for the rest of my life. You have changed me. I am a better man because of you and Liam. I want to grow old with you. I want to be by your side until we’re old and gray and yelling at each other about who was a better surgeon.”

Jo let out a laugh as tears filled her eyes. Alex leaned in for a brief kiss before finally getting down on one knee, “I love you. So, Jo Wilson, will you marry me?”

Jo’s breath hitched, “Yes.”

“Yes?”

“Yes! Alex, I can’t wait to marry you.”

“Mommy and Daddy are getting married!” Liam squealed from where he was standing.

Alex and Jo laughed at Liam’s excitement, “Yeah, we are.”


	4. Part 4 - where you find after your first time together

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The legends say you'd know it immediately--immediately after making love to you soulmate for the first time

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> this chapter is Rated M for sexual situations and adult themes!!!!

**Where you find out after your first time together**

  
  


******

She remembers learning about it like it was yesterday. For the majority of her life, she didn’t even know they existed. Could you blame her though? A life in the foster care system didn’t normally equate with healthy ideals and perceptions of loving relationships. It wasn’t until she was fourteen that she first learned about soulmates. 

She had been living in a group home run by nuns back then. It was probably the best living situation she’d ever had. The downside was that the group home was temporary. She’d get about six months to a year there before the state would reassign her to whatever crappy foster parents were available to take her. The nuns were sweet and genuinely cared for her well-being. They helped her get babysitting gigs to score some extra cash, they washed her laundry, they baked her favorite desserts, they always made sure that she was taking the best classes in school, but best of all, they were honest. 

To outsiders, it was almost comical how open the nuns were when it came to talking about sex. Well, it wasn’t really sex that they were talking about. It was the soul bond. You know, the verse that says a man will leave his father and mother to be with his wife and they will become one flesh? Well, when the nuns found out that she’d never heard of soulmates before, they wasted no time explaining everything to her. 

It was from them that she learned how sacred sex was. Because that’s how you found out. The first time you make love to your soulmate, there’s this thing that happens. This explosion of emotion and love that you can’t quite contain as the bond of two people becoming one was completed. There was nothing quite like it. 

That’s why from a young age, she learned not to take it for granted. If she’d learned anything from her time at the group home with the nuns, it was that you didn’t just have sex with anyone who came around. No, you waited until you found a person you loved and a person who loved you before consummating the relationship in the most intimate of ways.

That’s why she made the decision early on to save herself for her future husband. Sure her peers may have thought she was weird or crazy for having such thoughts, but it honestly wasn’t that hard for her. Not when unbeknownst to them, she’d see her soulmate in her dreams. 

Yes, that was right. She could see him. The first time she told the nuns about her dreams, they ooh’ed and ahh’ed over her confession. Sister Miriam had heard of this before. It didn’t happen to most couples, but pairs of soulmates with extremely strong connections often would dream of each other so vividly, it was like they were truly in the same room. These were the couples that would be drawn to each other almost immediately. They were the special ones. The strongest bonds. They were the couples people wrote books about movies about. 

So, young Jo embraced the dreams. She looked forward to the moment she finally drifted off in a peaceful slumber and got the chance to feel him again. His face was always conveniently blurred so she didn't know who he was. He would stand in front of her and cup her face in his strong hands, holding her as if she were a precious jewel. Tentatively, he'd lean down and kiss her, tasting her and exploring her softly before becoming more assertive with his ministrations.

The clothes fell from her skin and he kissed every inch of her that he saw: her nose, her breasts, her stomach, her lower lips. Every kiss sent Jo's senses reeling and she'd tug him closer to her, wanting more of his hands on her. She was obsessed with his touch and she couldn't get enough.

Her soulmate would gently deposit her on the bed and remove his clothing, watching her carefully, taking in her naked body. Jo could sense how aroused he was by the heaving of his chest and the hardness of his shaft. It always gave her a thrill of pleasure knowing that he wanted her so much.

Once he took off his clothes, he crawled onto the mattress and skimmed his hands over the valleys and peaks of her body, caressing and stroking her in her most intimate places so achingly slow that it'd bring her to climax.

Then he would give her a few seconds to catch her breath before positioning himself above her and pushing his way into her body. Somehow, he knew just where she liked to be touched and his hands fondled her with adoration as he continued to push his hips against hers again and again.

These dreams would come to Jo every single night she went to sleep and it was all she could do to stay sane after waking up. For a long time, she yearned to know what it would feel like to make love with her soulmate for real.

She was nineteen when she thought she’d finally found it. She’d been attending Princeton, but living in her car because her scholarships didn’t cover housing. She’d been getting ready for bed one night when one of her professors, Dr. Stadler, knocked on the window of her car. He must’ve deduced what was going on, because she got an invitation to stay in his home. 

It started out with her just renting a room for eighty bucks a month. Eventually, it ended up with her agreeing to marry the man at the tender age of twenty, despite the protests of her friends.

On her wedding night, she’d been excited. She did the right thing. She waited and now she was going to be able to consummate her relationship with her husband and hopefully, complete the soulmate connection. You can imagine the disappointment when nothing happened. There were no fireworks, there was no rush of emotions, there was no bond that had been formed. That’s when she realized the mistake she made. She’d married a man who wasn’t her soulmate. 

Jo tried to get over it. Honestly, she tried to ignore the feeling of emptiness every time she joined her husband in coitus. She focused on what he would always tell her, that it was her duty as a wife to fulfill his needs and desires. That she should feel privileged to get the opportunity to satisfy him in that way. 

It worked for a couple years. Even throughout the abuse, she told herself that maybe it was because she wasn’t being a good enough lover. Maybe if she just became more submissive, maybe if she just quieted her moans a little more, maybe if she stopped thinking about what she desired, maybe if she focused on his pleasure, then he’d change his ways and realize that the abuse wasn’t conducive to their relationship.

And like she said, the lies she told herself for a couple years worked. Until one day they didn’t. 

When she left, she had written off the thought of finding her soulmate. The once expectant youthful spirit within her had been crushed by the dark realities of the real world. The fairytale of finding your soulmate was just that, a fairytale. A whimsical, enchanting story that often ended in tragedy. 

  
  


******

Growing up, he’d heard about soulmates. He’d heard the legends about finding out when you first made love and scoffed at the idea of there being one person for you.

Life had never been that simple for him. If anything, his life was colored by way too many shades of complicated. It was exhausting to say the least. His home situation growing up hadn’t been the best. The instability, the abuse, the fear, well that was enough to make anyone go looking for love in places they shouldn’t. 

The first time he had sex, he was fifteen. By no means, did he believe that she was his soulmate. She was the school nurse for crying out loud, and as mature and jaded as he might’ve been at that age, she still took advantage of his naivety and innocence. 

The second person he had sex with was around his age. It was definitely a different experience, but there were still no sparks--not that he’d been expecting any. He’d heard the girl was a great lay and that’s all there was to it. No butterflies, no excitement other than arousal. 

The third person he slept with, well he had actually loved her. The anticipation leading up to it had his seventeen year old self thrumming with nerves. Maybe, she’d be it. Maybe he’d finally obtain the love and stability he craved for so long. Much to his disappointment, she wasn’t the one he’d been hoping for. It was probably for the best though, because two weeks later, he overheard the girl talking bad about his mom and promptly ended the relationship. 

After that, he stopped pursuing relationships. Sex was a tool. It was a stress reliever. Which is why by the time he’d graduated med school, he’d probably slept with upwards of thirty partners. Every time it was the same. Arousal and that’s where it ended. There was no depth, no connection, no earth-shattering moment. All there was, was release. A momentary pleasure that lasted a few minutes before it faded away into nothingness and brought back the feelings of inadequacy of his youth. 

It may have been why he sabotaged relationships before they really had a chance to take off. The constant fear of being left alone was a result of a deep set trauma he’d experienced growing up. He slept around and earned the title Evil Spawn due to his seemingly crass and careless attitude. He hurt people and caused unnecessary pain and drama. A part of him knew it was wrong, and he wanted to be better.

Maybe that’s why he married a woman who wasn’t his soulmate. Sure, she was beautiful, kind, funny, optimistic, and a bit dramatic at times, but he truly did love her. He loved her and she was sick and he wanted to do right by her. He wanted to give her something to live for. 

It didn’t really occur to him that maybe he should’ve waited. Maybe he shouldn’t have married a woman who wasn’t his soulmate. Because what happened if Izzie lived? He’d made a vow to never be with another woman as long as the two of them lived. He’d be tied to a woman that was promised to someone else for the rest of his life. He supposed he could live with it. He could be happy. He could make Izzie happy. Maybe he’d be enough.

He wasn’t enough, though. Months into their marriage, Izzie left him. She left him because she didn’t trust him. Although he’d done nothing wrong, she’d left him and tossed him aside like garbage. That really did a number on him. He went from the doting, caring husband back to the Evil Spawn he’d tried to grow out of. 

Again came the meaningless one night stands and flings that would never last. Every one of those encounters leaving him more and more disappointed. It shouldn’t be this hard to find your soulmate. All he wanted was to feel something--anything--the next time he found himself in bed with a woman. 

But as the years passed, it grew clearer that this was his life. He was soulmate-less and alone. And until he reconciled with that, he’d never be able to move on with his life. 

  
  


******

  
  


Meeting Jo is probably one of the most significant days of Alex’s life. He knows almost immediately that this intern is going to be a pain in his ass, but he can’t quite shake the feeling that she’s special. 

Jo on the other hand, would say that meeting Alex Karev and becoming friends with Alex Karev is one of the things she never saw coming. Of course she thought he was attractive, who wouldn’t? Still, she never thought that their friendship would turn into this.

But if you ask either Jo or Alex what the best day of their lives was, they’d probably answer the same thing: the best day happened about a week ago when they shared their first kiss. Sure, that day had been messy and complicated, but if it weren’t for trees in living rooms and hospital blackouts, they probably would’ve been too chicken to get together. Which sounds pretty ridiculous because anyone with eyes could see just how perfect those two were for each other.

Maybe that’s why Cristina is so surprised when she finds out that Jo and Alex have yet to consummate their relationship, “Did you guys have sex and it was awful? Was she awful?”

“No,” Alex grumbles, still half asleep. 

“Were you awful? And now you’re so ashamed you can’t even look at her?”

“No,” Alex shifts in the bed, bringing the pillow closer to him. 

“Was it weird?” Cristina whispers in his ear. “Is she a man? Ooh! Secret penis.”

“Shut up,” Alex scrunches his face. 

“Well, then why don’t you guys ever sleep together?” Cristina asks, still not understanding.

Alex finally has had enough and jolts from the bed to face his friend, “We will!”

“Oh,” Cristina’s jaw drops and her eyes fill with mirth. “You too haven’t done it yet.”

“We do… we have… we…” 

“Oh you do, done it?” Cristina mocks. “You have?”

“We do… we do! Just get out!” Alex sneers. 

“Okay, okay… Just think about that,” Cristina hums and nods her head. “Because it’s been like, a week and you haven’t closed the deal. What have you done to Evil Spawn?”

“I was sleeping,” Alex frowns, facing away from Cristina and gripping his pillow tightly. 

Cristina lets out a laugh and pats Alex on the shoulder before getting up, “Oh God, I knew you’d cheer me up.” 

Alex groans as he hears her leave the room. He wants to have sex with Jo. He really does. But for some reason, he’s nervous. He doesn’t think he’s ever been this nervous before. Hell, he’s never told a woman he loves her before he’s even slept with her. This is all new territory and it's kind of freaking him out. 

Jo on the other hand, is desperate for something--anything that will serve as her signal that Alex wants her and is ready to have sex with her, “I’m waiting for Alex to make a move. So, I’m prepared. All the time.” 

“What about grooming?” Leah asks. 

“All the time,” Jo huffs in annoyance. 

“That’s exhausting,” Stephanie comments, looking her friend up and down. “Why don’t you just make the first move?”

“Because I’m not the slut that just jumps into bed with someone right after her friend died,” Jo explains, pulling her scrub pants on.

“Really?” Stephanie teases, patting Jo’s butt playfully. 

“Well, I’m not gonna advertise it,” Jo sighs and moves to put on her top. “I’m just… I want to get out of the way. I need to know.” 

“Know what?” Leah shakes her head in confusion.

Stephanie tilts her head, “You don’t think? Karev?”

“You think Karev might be your soulmate?” Leah’s eyes bulge out in surprise. “I did not see that coming.” 

“I don’t know… maybe?” Jo leans against her locker. “All I know is that I haven’t felt this way about anyone before. Just one kiss with him is so much more… than anything I could do with anyone else. 

“It’s been a week and he hasn’t made a move. Is that weird?” 

“Yeah,” Stephanie states frankly, leaving Jo to bang her head on her locker. 

A couple hours pass and Jo and Alex find themselves frustrated. Each one wanting to have sex with the other, but too nervous to actually do anything about it. It isn’t until Alex finds himself in the OR with Cristina later that afternoon that he finally realizes what’s been eating up at him. 

“Would you stop wringing your hands? God, no wonder you can’t have sex.”

“I can have sex,” Alex glares at her. The OR goes quiet as the staff stares at the two surgeons strangely. “I can have sex.”

“Are the hydraulics not working?” Cristina asks. “I can write you a script.” 

“Look, that’s not… she’s not,” Alex stumbles over his words. “She’s just… bummed about her dead friend and stressed about her exams.”

“Those are not valid,” Cristina looks at Alex unimpressed, waiting for him to finally cough up the real reason why he hasn’t made a move yet. 

“Alright. There’s been a lot of girls since Izzie. A lot of nobodies. This girl isn’t a nobody. She’s…” Alex shakes his head. “I don’t know. When I think about it, it just seems important. Like… like it’s gotta be the right time.”

Cristina stops what she’s doing and looks up, “You want it to be special.” 

“What?” 

“Nothing. It’s sweet.” 

“Are you making fun of me?” Alex scoffs at his friend, mildly offended.

“I am not,” Cristina looks at him seriously. “Can I ask you one thing? When we’re done here, will you braid my hair?”

Alex makes a face as Cristina giggles quietly, “You’ve got to get over this whole special thing. Just throw her over your shoulder, take her to bed, and go to town.”

“Every girl’s dream,” Alex replies sarcastically. 

“She’s the thing that’s special dumbass,” Cristina exhales and takes a more serious tone. “God, you have the right person, right there. You both want the same thing. Maybe she’s your soulmate, maybe she’s not. You won’t know until you go for it. So stop being a sissy and go make love to your girl and find out.” 

Later that night, Alex walks into the house and throws his backpack in the corner, eyebrows furrowing when he sees Jo waiting in front of the steps with a nervous smile on her face.

“We have the house to ourselves,” she lets out a breath and continues. “But I want you to know that just because I’m about to jump into bed with you, doesn’t mean I’m an unfeeling slut who isn’t sad about Heather, because I am sad. But I’m also very, very--” 

“No more talking,” Alex makes a motion with his hands. 

“What? Oh!” Jo gasps loudly as Alex throws her over his shoulder in a fireman’s hold and starts up the stairs. So, turned on by his display, Jo shouts and giggles. “Yes! Oh thank God!”

After that, she doesn’t know what to think. To be completely honest, she’s not sure she wants to think. The moment he’d slung her over his shoulder and carried her up the stairs Jo had been a goner. Which is why it’s so easy to let any and every semblance of conscious thought fly out the window the moment his body rocks hers into the wall and his lips move to her neck. His kisses are both frantic and reverent, hasty in his urge to taste every inch of skin, yet he allows himself to pause just long enough to nip at her with each brush of his lips before he moves lower.

His reverent fingers start to remove her shirt and kiss down every inch of silky skin he finds. Hot lips trail down from the side of her face to her neck. His teeth scraping at her collarbones, making Jo squirm under him. Fingers thread in his hair, drawing him all the more closer. Alex murmurs how sweet and beautiful she is, how perfect she is, and how much he loves her at every inch of newly revealed skin.

She repeats the sentiment and then moans aloud uncontrollably when he finally removes her bra and takes her hard nipple in his mouth. Jo’s back arches as he takes his time eagerly pleasuring her with his tongue and teeth, giving her more pleasure than she ever thought possible.

It’s dizzying, distracting her, making her fumble as she tries to undo the buttons of his shirt. Everything between them feels hot, frantic. Perfect. Even without ever having slept with him, part of her knows he’d always feel this perfect, even when nothing is at all.

He lifts her petite body up as Jo wraps her legs around his waist. Their lips don’t leave each other's until he places her down on his bed. Jo pulls him down for another slow and sensual kiss as he lets her take control and search every corner of his mouth. Jo moves her hips against his, desperate for more friction between them.

“Jo,” he breathes, moving down onto his knees in front of her, and she tips her head forward as he hooks his thumbs over the waistband of her jeans and her panties, tugging them down her thighs. His hand curves over her hips as he digs his fingers in, making her gasp as he bites lower, teeth grazing the inside of her thigh. His lips murmur her name into her skin over and over again, a tease, a taunt. A punishment, she realizes, when his breath ghosts over where she’s aching and wet, pausing, his eyes flicking up to meet her gaze. She pushes her fingers into his hair, tightening, earning the wisps of a smile on his lips.

And her heart cracks wide open.

He licks a broad stripe up her sex, quickly finding her clit, and she lets out a moan. Jo arches her back when she feels his lips on her hot wet folds. It was all sweet and gentle but she needed more. She was desperate for more. She couldn't take this slow torment anymore.

"Alex… baby… please," Jo’s breath catches in her throat as her hands push his head down to urge him to go faster. He complies, anything she wants she will have it. His tongue licks up her slit, tasting her sweet nectar, until he finds the sensitive nub that makes Jo moan his name out loud. 

He sucks at the tight little bud, once, twice, three times, drawing out a mewl from her lips as she coils forward and twists her fingers into his hair, and then his tongue slips lower, licking down to her entrance as her knees quiver.

It takes him no time at all until she’s whimpering, grinding her hips as best as she can as he finds her clit again, sucking, circling, pushing her closer and closer to that dizzying edge. He groans, slips a hand between her legs and strokes two fingers over her slickness, almost toying with her wetness – because fuck she’s so wet – and then easing them inside of her as he pulls his lips off of her with staggered inhale, like he’s gasping for air. Her vision nearly whites out when he curls his fingers, thumb stroking over her folds as his lips hover, parted, just over her throbbing bundle of nerves. She mewls, knees quivering as his fingers continue curling, making her keen out as they brush that sweet spot.

Then he slips his hand out, takes her clit between his lips and hums as he pushes three fingers back into her, and her body jolts as she comes with a cry.

Her walls clamp around his fingers for a moment, pulling a groan from the back of his throat, and he thrusts once, twice, three more times, long and hard and deep, before pulling his hand away to grip her hips, as her body writhes from the waves of her orgasm.

His lips are still against her sex, teasing her as he murmurs soft, sweet things, coaxing her back down from her high. He doesn’t stop until she comes down from the euphoric high. He doesn’t remove his mouth from her until Jo gently shoves him away, overstimulated.

When she opens her eyes again, Alex is stripping off his clothes and giving her a great view. Alex kneels down between her legs, parting them wide enough. Jo feels the tips of his length at her entrance and she fights the urge to just thrust her hips up, biting her lips to keep herself from moaning.

"Alex… I need you," it sounds like a hopeless plea that only he could release her from this agony. “I need you now. Please don’t make me wait anymore.”

“Never… not anymore,” Alex cups Jo’s face and looks at her with so much love that it’s overwhelming. 

This is it. This is the moment they’d been anticipating for the past week. This is the moment where they’d confirm what they’d already suspected for months, now. It is sacred. It is now. 

The nerves course through their bodies, sending shivers up each of their spines. Every neuron is charged with endless amounts of electricity, waiting to finally connect their bodies. With one last look at Jo for approval, Alex aligns himself, slowly pushing in. 

It happens instantly. Immediately after Alex sheaths himself inside of her, there’s a flash, a shift that takes over all conscious thought processes and the rest of the world fades away. It’s followed by this rush, this burst of emotions that knocks the breath out of each of their lungs. Jo and Alex gasp for air as they take in the magic of what is occurring. No one moves, no one hardly breathes, in fear of ruining the oh so precious moment in front of them. 

The first thing they feel is love. An all-consuming, ever-growing love that seems to spill out of their pores. The second is joy. A contagious, tear-inducing, kind of joy that wouldn’t run out. The third is peace. There’s a sense of utter contentment, security, and tenderness in their actions. 

Finally, there’s the bond. Though, both Jo and Alex suppose that it is simply the completion of the bond that had always been there. From the moment they met, Alex recognized something different in this woman. There was something about her voice, her smile, her laugh, her eyes, that made his heart beat wildly every time she grew near. In all his life, Alex had never experienced love quite like this before. It was always fleeting and often temporary, but this… oh this love is here to stay. So, although overwhelmed, he’s not really surprised at all. This was something he’d always known. Jo was without a doubt his soulmate, and he was hers. 

For Jo, it is almost too much. Too much feeling that she’d never experienced from sex before. It had never been this way before. She never felt so much love from a man. She never felt so safe and cherished. Before this it was all greed and lust, not love, caring and reverence. It is a new and earth shattering kind of realization. This was what the nuns had been talking about. This is the kind of thing they write about in romance novels. This is the kind of thing from dreams. 

Except it isn’t a dream. It’s real. The stories she’d learned as a child, the promise of the legend he so desperately craved, they are all true. 

Jo lets out a shaky breath as she opens her eyes to look up at Alex. He’s already staring back at her, a look of absolute love and wonder on his face. They stay there like that for a moment, taking in the intensity of emotions. There’s a silent communication going on as Alex enjoys the feeling of her warmth enveloping him as he stretches her and allows her to adjust to his size. 

Jo rolls her hips slightly as she reaches up to kiss him. They both groan at the sensation. Sensing that she’s ready for more, Alex begins to thrust torturously slow. Even though she’s dripping wet, Alex is careful in his movements, pushing inch by inch until he’s once again seated fully inside her heavenly body. 

A whimper escapes her lips and it takes Alex's attention. His brown eyes cautiously observing her but he sees nothing but desire burning bright. She licks her lips and digs her hands in his hair, “Oh my God.” 

Alex feels so good inside her, filling her up, reaching the places she didn't know existed within her. Every touch makes her feel alive. He slowly pulls back, moaning at the feeling of her heat and wetness that surrounded him. They were made for each other. Alex bends down to kiss her lovingly as he plants both hands on the bed for the support. Eagerly trying to press back against his hard thrusts, her legs wrap around his hips. 

This was a dream.

He whispered in her ear, "I'm real."

She stares back up at him, tears running down the side of her face from her beautiful hazel eyes.

"Why are you crying? Am I hurting you?" Alex asks, alarmed at her reaction.

"No… no… I just… it's perfect." Jo chokes back a sob and breaks out into a smile, "Everything is perfect."

Alex kisses away her tears and picks up his pace once again. His hands take hold at her hips as they move as one, breathe as one, and come alive as one. Every movement, every kiss, every moan, every high allows their souls to reach out for each other, their minds become one, and every part of their very own being comes together at this final stage of the bond. The deepest level of intimacy between two soulmates. The soulmate bond is finally complete and nothing could ever separate them.

Another wave of tears of joy fall from Jo's eyes as she feels how close they are now. She is sure she’s about to combust when he thrusts back to the hilt in one powerful slam, feeling his cock rubbing over her g-spot making Jo moan quietly. She trails her fingers through his hair, holding him closer at the same time he rocks faster into her.

"Alex… god… almost there,” she cries, all other thoughts and words fading away as all of her is consumed with lust and desire.

Alex seems to pick up on her cues and drives hard and fast into her. Jo throws her head back and moans aloud. His thick shaft is pulsing inside her, making her body tremble, spasm and convulse around him. Alex groans out her name as her walls clench around him, pulling him over the edge with her. Alex doesn’t stop moving even when she comes hard, still moving his hips harder, deeper, helping her ride out her orgasm as he fills her up.

He holds her tight and unwilling to let her go even after she finally comes down from her high. He keeps her in his warm embrace, pressing a loving kiss over her neck and shoulder, murmuring how much he loves her.

Jo feels tears prickling at her eyes once again. Sure, she’s never felt more sated and beautiful up until this point. But that’s not what’s overwhelming. What gets her is the fact that she’s never felt so much love until this very moment, until Alex. 

He settles down next to her on the bed and pulls her along with him, "I love you."

"I love you too, Alex,” she replies. 

They lay there for some time, staring at each other intensely. It’s strange how easy this is; how right this feels. No words are necessary. Not anymore. The completion of the soulmate bond renders all other kinds of communication obsolete. Words aren’t necessary when you can feel every emotion that your other half is experiencing. 

Still, words can be lovely. Words still have value. 

“It’s you,” Jo breathes out, a smile forming at the corner of her lips. 

“It’s you,” Alex echos, pressing their foreheads together. “God, I’m so happy it’s you.” 

“I didn’t think I had one,” Jo confesses quietly. “I thought that maybe I was too broken, or didn’t deserve one. But I have one and it’s you. My best friend. My favorite person.” 

“I didn’t think I had one either,” Alex shares, kissing her nose softly. “I hoped it was you. That’s why I took so long to make a move. I was scared that I’d be wrong. Because, there’s no one I can think of that I’d rather spend the rest of my life loving.” 

“We’re soulmates,” Jo grins brightly. “We get to tell everyone that we’re soulmates.” 

“Yeah, we do,” Alex’s face mirrors hers. “I can’t wait for the whole world to know that the amazing, incredible, intelligent, gorgeous, Jo Wilson is my soulmate.” 

Jo laughs, “I love you.” 

“I love you more.” 

  
  


**Author's Note:**

> Feel free to send me any ideas for ways of discovering your soulmate!


End file.
